A federal judge on Wednesday rejected Minnesota’s attempt to force the extradition of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer being held in Texas on charges stemming from the shooting of a man during the federal immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, potentially clearing the way for the officer to be released from custody.
Christian Castro faces charges in Minnesota of assault and falsely reporting a crime in connection with the Jan. 14 shooting of 24-year-old Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis. Minnesota officials have been seeking to bring Castro back to the state since he was arrested, but he has remained jailed in Brownsville, Texas, near the Mexican border.
Unless an extradition order is issued, Texas law requires Castro to be freed after 90 days in custody. That deadline is Thursday.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison went to federal court last week seeking a temporary restraining order that would prevent the Cameron County sheriff from releasing Castro. Ellison also asked the court to compel Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to sign the warrant authorizing Castro’s extradition to Minnesota.
Minnesota officials have argued that Castro could leave the United States if released. Their lawsuit cited jailhouse telephone conversations between Castro and a woman in Mexico in which he spoke “about marrying her and buying a house in Mexico when he is released.”
The charges against Castro stem from an incident in which he allegedly fired through the front door of a Minneapolis residence, striking Sosa-Celis in the leg. Prosecutors also accuse Castro of making a false report claiming that Sosa-Celis and another man had attacked an ICE officer using a broom handle and snow shovel.
During a federal court hearing in Brownsville on Tuesday, attorneys representing the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office argued that authorities could have significant difficulty forcing Castro to return to Minnesota to face prosecution if he is released from custody. They again raised concerns that he could leave the country, pointing to his telephone conversations with a woman living in Mexico.
Abbott said last week that he would not act on Minnesota’s extradition request. The Texas governor pointed to the continuing investigation into alleged fraud involving Minnesota government social-service programs, an issue President Donald Trump has cited in defending his administration’s immigration enforcement crackdown in the state.
{Matzav.com}
